This is part of a series helping you succeed in the TOEIC exam.

Responding to questions

You will be asked 3 questions. You will have only 3 seconds to prepare each question. For questions 5 and 6, you should speak for 15 seconds. For question 7, you should speak for 30 seconds. 

The questions will be based on familiar topics like food, travel and entertainment.

You will receive a prompt for the question; for example:

Imagine that an English marketing firm is doing research in your country. You have agreed to participate in a telephone interview about travel.

5. How often do you watch travel overseas?

6. What kind of things do you think about when booking a holiday?

7. Describe a memorable trip you have taken.

or

Imagine that a US marketing company is doing research in your country. You have agreed to participate in an interview about exercise.

5. How many times per week do you exercise?

6. Where do you usually go to exercise?

7. How important is it for children to take part in regular exercise at school? Why?



Here are a few tips:

1. Don't just give one-word answers.


2. Give examples relevant to the question.

I exercise five times a week at the gym. I mostly do weight training. I also take my dog for a thirty minute walk every afternoon.

3. If you are asked to give your opinion on something:

• state your opinion (I think that...   In my opinion...)
  
  I think that regular exercise is very important for children.
  
  
• give two or three reasons to support your opinion
  
  Many children don’t have opportunities to do regular exercise, so classes at school are a great way to keep up their fitness levels. Exercise has also been shown to improve concentration and academic performance.
  
  
• state your opinion again to conclude
  
  That’s why I think all schools should have compulsory physical education classes for students.

4. If you are asked to describe something

• Begin with an introduction sentence that states what you are describing
  
  I took a memorable trip to Hawaii when I was a university student
  
  
• Give the reason why you chose this person/place/thing
  
  The reason this trip left such a big impression on me was the different activities I participated in.
  
  
• Describe the person/place/thing
  
  One of my favourite activities was a snorkelling tour. I was amazed by the colourful coral reefs and tropical fish. I was even lucky enough to see a pod of dolphins. I also tried surfing for the first time. I wasn’t very good, but by the end of the day I was at least able to stand up! On the last night, we went to a luau, where we saw hula and fire dancing performances and had a delicious feast of traditional Hawaiian foods. It was a great end to a wonderful trip.

Over to you!
How would you answer the questions from the start of the blog post?
Share your answers in the comments!

Would you like to practice your TOEIC speaking skills? If so, I recommend my lesson Speaking for Tests. Students can access a coupon using this link.